The invention relates to a securing system between bicycle pedal and shoe of the user, in which a pedal body is provided which, with respect to the crank arm of the bicycle, can rotate freely around a horizontal transverse axis that runs perpendicular to the crank arm, while the pedal body has at least one additional degree of freedom of movement with respect to the crank arm.
Such a bicycle pedal is known from DE 32 18 290 A1, which deals with a pedal training device that has several degrees of freedom of movement with respect to its crank arm. The pedal body is fastened to a ball that is supported by bearings in a hollow spherical shell.
A further bicycle pedal is known from FR 2 509 249, in which the pedal body can be pivoted around a horizontal axis running in the direction of travel and intersecting the transverse axis, and can be fixed. No pivoting in use is provided, however, because the pedals are intended to be permanently adjusted to the requirements of the user once and for all before being taken into use.
These known pedals have the disadvantage in use that they take no account of human biomechanics in the exercise of cycling in the sporting domain. This applies especially to that cycling known as mountain-bike cycling, particularly in hilly terrain, in which cyclists change to "seesaw" pedalling. The shoes of the cyclist are usually permanently connected to the pedal body through an appropriate take-up and latching couple. An alternative possibility is the use of common shoes, which are connected more or less permanently to the pedals via a foot cage. This rigid binding with the pedal body is necessary for the requisite optimal transmission of force. It has the disadvantage, however, that in "seesaw" pedalling, when the bicycle is positioned transversely with respect to a horizontal axis in the direction of travel, the upper body of the cyclist continues to be upright. Nevertheless, the feet of the cyclist are in a slanting position via the permanent and rigid shoe-pedal connection. Since the vertical alignment of the body is also taken up by the legs, it is the ankles of the cyclist that are in an anatomically incorrect position and transmit the tilting. This causes substantial stress to this part of the body, while this human transmission axis also reduces the effectiveness of the force employed by the cyclist.